The present invention relates to a carriage support system for a computer driven printer/plotter carriage which slides back and forth transversely of the path of paper travel through the printer/plotter on at least one smooth support rod which is ordinarily cylindrical.
Printer/plotter carriages are typically supported on two sliding tracks such as two smooth centerless ground steel rods which are expensive to manufacture to the close tolerances required for high resolution high speed printing. A carriage support system which can be manufactured to and retain close tolerances without the attendant expense of a plurality of centerless ground steel support rods is therefore required for printer/plotter carriages which must move without impediment at a high rate of speed with frequent reversals in the direction of movement along the slider rods. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,755,836 issued to Taj, et. al. on Jul. 5, 1988 and assigned to the assignee of the present invention, a single slider rod relatively closely positioned on one side of the printer carriage is used in combination with a guide track positioned relatively far from the printer carriage on the other side thereof. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,872,026 issued on Oct. 3, 1989 and 4,843,338 issued Jun. 27, 1989, to Rassmussen, et. al. and assigned to the assignee of the present invention each use a slider rod and guide track positioned on the same side of the carriage.
Carriage support systems have ordinarily been manufactured separate and apart from the paper or other print media feed system which uses a plurality of separate paper pinch wheels such as star wheels or grit wheels which are individually biased toward a paper feed roller or belt. A carriage support system which also supports the pinch wheels enables the elimination of excessive parts subject to malfunction or breakage.
An ancillary objective is therefore to provide a carriage support system in which paper engaging feed wheels or rollers of the paper or other print media moving system can also be supported from one of the same transversely mounted printer carriage supports so as to eliminate excessive parts and the cost thereof.